The Insider Pick:

No suit is complete without a great necktie. For your staple tie, it's hard to beat black, and this luxurious silk tie from Turnbull and Asser hits every mark. Its high-quality bias-cut Italian silk looks wonderful, drapes beautifully, and works with any type of knot.

The venerable necktie is perhaps the most timeless of men's accessories. Ties are both loved and hated, and they've been saddled with undeserved connotations of stuffy work environments and restrictive dress codes. Yet the 21st century has seen a great return to tradition in the world of menswear. In the age of "business casual," no longer is the suit-and-tie a symbol of conformity or of office drudgery. Now, wearing a nice tie one of the surest ways for the well-dressed man to stand apart from the sea of pleated khakis and baggy blue button-up shirts.

It should come as no surprise, then, that the necktie — just like many other elements of traditional menswear — is undergoing something of a renaissance at the moment. Perhaps due to (and not in spite of) more casual modern dress codes, more men are opting to wear a tie because they want to instead of begrudgingly putting one on because they have to. And maybe this is the way it should have been all along.

If you're reading this, then you're probably hoping to learn what constitutes a good tie, plan to start or expand your own neckwear rotation, or both. It's a good possibility that you've already got a few cheap neckties sitting in a drawer or your closet and it's time to upgrade.

We've made it easier for you to get started by picking out our five favorite neckties that we think every many should own. If you wanted, you could just grab this handful of essentials and pretty much be set. Although once you've entered the big, beautiful world of fine men's neckwear, it's not likely you'll want to stop at five.

The best tie overall

Turnbull & Asser

Why you'll love it: The Turnbull and Asser tie is our top pick for any man because it's a tie that James Bond himself would be proud to wear.

Let's be honest: You probably already have a black tie, but it's probably some cheap polyester thing you grabbed at a department store years ago. It's probably machine-stitched, shiny, and the exact type of tie that makes you think ties are merely a necessary evil. Trust us, it's time for an upgrade.

The thicker fabric and conservative width (3.75 inches at its widest point) allow this timeless tie to work well with most suits, face shapes, and knots. The wider Windsor and half-Windsor knots are my recommendations for this one.

Feel free to pair the Turnbull and Asser necktie with any suit you'd feel comfortable wearing with black dress shoes. A black tie won't go well with certain casual suit shades like tan or olive, but it's a great no-nonsense accessory to pair with the charcoal, light- and mid-gray, and dark navy jackets you're likely to be wearing in most business environments.

James Bond often favored simple woven black ties in the Ian Fleming novels, and if something like this is good enough for 007, it's good enough for us.

Pros: It's hand-stitched in Kent of Suffolk-made silk, the conservative width is ideal for almost any occasion or work environment, and the thicker twill weave gives the tie great body with an appealing visual texture

Cons: It won't pair well with some casual suit colors, and it's fairly expensive

The best semi-formal tie

You really only need one good black tie in your neckwear rotation, so once you've got that staple nailed down, it's time to move into more colorful territory. For a good semi-formal jack-of-all-trades tie, dark solids and subtle patterns are what you want. Imagine something that Don Draper might wear with one of his ever-present mid-gray suits. You've got a lot of options, but our pick is a tried-and-true striped repp necktie from Brooks Brothers.

This tie features a bold pattern that is commonly referred to as "repp" or "rep" to describe the fabric's diagonal weave. This kind of tie has been around for more than a century and remains especially popular in Anglophone countries like England and the United States, because of their use of traditional colors that represent British and American Ivy League schools.

I personally recommend a half-windsor knot for this one, as it goes nicely with the tie's "middle-ground" width without being as in-your-face as a full windsor. The Brooks Brothers repp tie is easily the most versatile piece of neckwear on our roundup as well, so feel free to pair it with just about any casual or semi-formal suit ensemble and wear it proudly year-round.

Pros: It's made in America of English-woven silk, the repp fabric has great body and texture without being shiny, it has a conservative bold striped pattern with a versatile medium cut, it's an excellent value, and it's easily the most versatile tie a man can own

Cons: The American Ivy League style is distinctly preppy may not suit everyone's tastes

The best casual knit tie

Why you'll love it: For a more casual tie, it's hard to beat a slim-cut knit, and the Charles Tyrwhitt tie is the perfect choice for adding some traditional masculine flair to a less formal outfit.

Moving away from formal and semi-formal neckwear brings us towards more laid-back styles, particularly the knit tie, which is a fantastic choice for casual wear. Whether you're adding a necktie to a business casual outfit for the office or pairing it with a smart-looking jacket for an evening out, a slim-cut silk or cotton knit tie is an essential piece of kit to have in your wardrobe.

Knit ties have become very common in recent years, but they're hardly new. Just like the timeless black necktie, Fleming's Bond was a big fan of knits. Knit fabrics are a stylish yet subtle way to spruce up an otherwise conservative solid-colored necktie thanks to the appealing visual texture of the surface. Pretty much all tiemakers offer knits today, but our pick is this attention-grabbing example from Charles Tyrwhitt, another English company known for its shirts.

Cotton isn't as costly as silk, but the quality and cut of the cloth still matters - even with a casual tie, there's no excuse for thin floppy fabric that is over-prone to wrinkling and distorting. Another thing to be wary of with knit ties is a weave that's too loose. You don't want a fabric that's woven so that it leaves your shirt readily visible underneath, but the Charles Tyrwhitt knit necktie features a thick weave for a solid hand-feel and a great look. The tie also offers a nice drape thanks to its substantial body.

Charles Tyrwhitt offers its ties in a variety of widths. The 2.5-inch size is suitably modern and slim without looking anemic, so there's no danger of it going out of style as those super-narrow ties are sure to. The slim-but-not-skinny cut also lets this necktie play nicely with a wider range of jackets, shirts, and face shapes.

Slim ties like this one work best with a four-in-hand knot, but the chunkier knit fabric offers sufficient thickness and body to work well with a half-windsor.

Pros: The chunkier knit texture looks and feels great, the thicker fabric gives the tie an excellent body and drape

Cons: The tie's casual style doesn't lend itself as well to more conservative suits

The best tie for spring and summer

While silk remains the most popular material for ties, it isn't particularly breathable around your neck in those sultry summer months. Enter linen: This wonderful fabric is airy, light, and breathable. Plus, it has many of the draping properties of silk and cotton.

Linen ties work very well with lighter shades like pastels and chambrays, which in turn pair beautifully with those popular lighter-colored summer suits. Our other picks have been pretty conservative so far but the Bonobos linen necktie is perfect for heralding the warmer seasons with a much-needed splash of springy color.

Bonobos makes its ties in United States, and this one is hand-stitched from fine Italian linen. The matte texture and light weight of linen give this necktie a visual character and hand-feel all its own. The raspberry pastel is the perfect complement to a light-colored cotton, linen, or tropical wool summer suit in light gray, tan, cream, and other cool shades.

A linen tie like this is definitely a more casual choice due to its lighter color and the draping properties of the material, so my advice is to keep the width medium to slim but well out of "skinny" territory. The Bonobos linen necktie hits the mark perfectly at exactly three inches wide.

With a lighter fabric like this, a little extra width also allows you to form a more substantial knot, such as a half-windsor, without being restricted to the standard four-in-hand.

Pros: The cotton/linen fabric is airy and breathable while offering sufficient weight for a proper knot and drape, the light raspberry pastel color is perfect for summer suits, and it's hand-stitched in America of Italian-made fabric

Cons: The lighter pastel color and linen fabric won't pair as well with darker suits

The best tie for fall and winter

American Trench

Why you'll love it: The American Trench wool tie is the perfect accessory when autumn rolls in and colder weather makes you want to keep your neck warm.

In style terms, there's really no reason you can't wear your staple silk and cotton neckties during fall and winter. But because the colder, wetter weather is the perfect excuse to bust out the tweed suits and darker earth tones, it can't hurt to have a few wool ties in your rotation. Wool ties and jackets are a match made in menswear heaven.

Wool neckties are often associated with tweed, herringbone, corduroy, and other such menswear elements that find their heritage in the English countryside. These regional styles have proliferated globally in recent years, due in no small part to the internet and online retail, with this rustic country aesthetic is becoming increasingly popular in the United States.

Wool provides some extra warmth in the cooler months but is actually quite breathable, and the warmer earth tones and unique texture of wool are also perfect for the season.Our pick for a great wool tie for wall and winter is this brown-colored piece from American Trench.

Hailing from the United States, this necktie is hand-stitched in New Jersey from wool spun in Connecticut that's as attractive as it is durable. Some high-end ties are made from cashmere, but this is a delicate fabric that can be a hassle to clean and care for, so we don't recommend it for your first wool tie. The American Trench necktie, by contrast, won't pill, wrinkle, or tear as easily as cashmere, yet still features a nice soft hand.

Match this earthy brown wool tie with pretty much any suit you'd feel comfortable wearing with a striped repp tie and brown shoes. Earth tones like olive and dark brown work especially well with a wool necktie. Weaves like herringbone and tweed also complement a wool tie beautifully because the thicker fabrics of the jacket and tie create an interesting visual texture.

Care for it just as you would your other neckwear, and the American Trench tie will be your cold weather companion for years to come.

Pros: The thick American-spun wool provides substantial body and a nice drape, it's hand-stitched in the United States, it offers extra warmth while remaining breathable, it's more durable (and less expensive) than cashmere, the fabric's visual texture and earth tones are perfect for cool-weather suits, and it's an unbeatable value

Things to look for in a high-quality tie

The Tie Bar

Your preferred style of tie is largely subjective, but quality is not, and there are a few construction details you need to nail down when shopping for a tie:

Fabric: The first consideration is your choice of fabric. The most commonly used neckwear material is silk, owing to its attractive appearance, flexibility, and durability. Most quality tie silk comes from Italy and England. Cotton and wool are also popular choices, particularly for knit and grenadine ties, with these chunkier weaves lending extra visual texture and a thicker body to the fabric. Linen and cotton (and blends of these) are perfect for lightweight warm weather neckties as well.

Bias cut: Quality ties should always be cut "on the bias," meaning that the tie-maker cuts the fabric diagonally so that the threads are woven at a 45-degree angle relative to the edge of the cloth. This is more costly, as it requires more material to be used, but the result is a necktie that drapes nicely and won't become distorted sideways. A bias cut tie should only ever stretch or flex downwards when pulled. This "pull test" is a quick way to determine if a fabric has been cut on the bias.

Stitching: The best neckties are hand-stitched, whereas most cheap store-bought ties are stitched on a machine. Hand-stitching ensures that the thread holding the shell together is not too tight. This allows the tie to flex and move properly without tearing. Machine stitching will not move or hold up as well. Good tie-makers also use good materials for their stitches — usually silk or special bonded nylon — and a hand-stitched tie will almost always feature a single horizontal stitch, called a "bar tack," on the back of the tie.

Thickness: The material that forms the shell of the tie is typically folded over an interlining three times and then stitched together. An increasing number of ties boast larger fold counts, but this is not a marker of higher quality. In fact, it could mean that the material used is cheap and that the tie lacks an interlining, meaning it will not drape or form a knot as nicely. Wool or cotton interlinings are preferred, whereas cheaper ties generally use inferior polyester interlinings.

This is a very short crash-course through the larger world of quality tie-making, but it's a sufficient launching point for you to begin leveling up your suit game.

One final thing worth mentioning is necktie care. It's pointless to buy quality ties and not know how to store and clean them properly. This guide recommends cedar tie racks for closet storage rather than rolling and placing them in a drawer, which can cause the fabric to warp.

If your tie gets dirty, blot the fabric, do not scrub or soak it. Failing that, take it to a professional cleaner. Finally, never iron your ties. If they get wrinkly, hang them up and let the wrinkles work themselves out. Wrinkles are generally caused by tying the knot too tightly, so avoid that as well.

Subscribe to our newsletter. Find all the best offers at our Coupons page. Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Insider Picks team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. We frequently receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.